(Image Courtesy of The Fedora Project)

What is Fedora

Fedora is an open source linux operating system that has been around for over 2 decades. Its first distribution was released in 2003 by Red Hat, a software company that creates open source software for enterprises. The Fedora Project consists of a dynamic and vibrant group of contributors specializing in different fields to make Fedora OS the staple community linux distribution. It currently has a release cycle of 6 to 8 months and boasts of 5 editions namely:

1. Fedora Workstation - this is a general-purpose, versatile and highly customizable operating system that covers many use cases and comes with a wide collection of applications and software.

2. Fedora Server - this is a powerful server operating system that allows enterprises to manage and monitor system performance and status. It comes fully installed with a management interface called Cockpit that makes working with your server much simpler.

3. Fedora IoT - this is an OS developed specifically to cater for the communication needs of IoT devices. It makes communication more secure and more seamless with pre-installed and user-friendly features and packages.

4. Fedora CoreOS - this edition makes it easy to run applications and software on any environment. It is designed to run numerous workloads on standalone containers securely.

5. Fedora Cloud - this edition is a lightweight virtual machine environment that provides different images that can be consumed in both private and public cloud infrastructures.

Foundations of Fedora Project

Since its inception in 2003, the Fedora Project has grown as a community of contributors united by the goal of creating the best free and open software. Managing such a large community can be challenging but the Fedora community has unanimously come up with methods of ensuring collaboration. At the helm of this community are elected steering committee members who have the mandate of overseeing projects. Meetings are regularly held to discuss the progress of the projects and there are multiple publications such as, the Fedora Magazine and the Fedora Community Blog where contributors and users of Fedora can get all the latest information.

The Fedora Project is guided by 4 key philosophies:

1. Freedom - Fedora is a community linux distribution and thus accepts contributions from everyone. There are ample guidelines on how to make varied forms of contributions on Fedora’s main site.

2. Friends - the community around Fedora amply subscribes to the classic saying, “If you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far, go with others.” Friendliness, camaraderie, acceptance, respect, and tolerance are correctly encouraged and practiced.

3. Features - only the best features are included in Fedora and each contributor strives to ensure that the quality of their work meets the highest standard.

4. First - contributors at the Fedora Project are committed to be the pace-setters in the vast eco-system of linux distributions. Great efforts are made to ensure that each Fedora release will cater wholly to the needs and preferences of Fedora users.

My experience at Fedora

In my brief time at the marketing department of the Fedora Project I have come to understand what is required of a community architect. Whilst not with a profit motive, I need to make the public see Fedora for what it is; an innovative, creative and outstanding operating system made literally by thousands of volunteers from all over the world. I also need to cater to the needs of Fedora users by providing timely information about new releases and features and information about events.

I have thoroughly enjoyed my duration as a contributor and have come to learn many valuable things which are inextricably tied to the four foundational philosophies of the Fedora Project. In one sentence I’ll say that the experience has taught me to work just as hard at my projects as at my relationship with fellow contributors and mentors.

Remember that anyone can contribute to Fedora and I would wholeheartedly invite you to sign up and get on board the Fedora express. Find more info here.